Technology and the Internet change at lightning speed. With these advances come frequent changes in the way we build and design websites. Is your website up to par with the latest technology? Here are 5 reasons your practice might want to consider a website redesign:

1) Your website does not take advantage of new coding techniques.

Each year, web standards change drastically, and techniques to build websites become more advanced in order to comply those standards. New techniques available allow us to not only enhance the attractiveness of your website, but also enhance your site’s Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

2) Your website is not suitable for the current most popular screen size and resolution.

The rapid advancement of technology in recent years goes hand-in-hand with the evolution of your website. A few short years ago, most computer monitors were smaller and screen resolutions were much lower. Sites had to conform to those restrictions.

As screen resolutions of desktop and laptop computers keep growing, the options we have to design and create content for your website also grows. A bigger screen and higher resolutions allow us more room for content-rich information “above the fold.”

3) Your site isn’t mobile-friendly.

In addition to the growing screen size and resolution, another important advancement is the growth of the mobile web via smartphones and tablets over the past year. According to media research firm, Nielson, there are over 83 million mobile web users in the U.S., 25% of which are expected to access the web from their device at least once a day. Further, research firm, IDC, is predicting that more people will access the web from mobile devices than computers by the year 2015.

Modern coding techniques allow us to make web pages adaptable on every mobile device. Getting yourself a new website redesign might be a great idea if you want to increase the accessibility of your site to the millions of mobile viewers.

Based on data published by technology performance company, Compuware:
• 46% of mobile web users are unlikely to return to a website that they had trouble accessing from their phone and 57% are unlikely to recommend the site.
• 34% said they’d likely visit a competitor’s mobile website instead.

4) The look and feel of your website is outdated.

Just as we feel the need to revamp our wardrobe or to drive the latest car, a similar attitude should also apply to our websites. Your website says a lot about you and your practice. As a medical professional, you want to be seen as cutting-edge and up-to-date with the latest technologies and treatments. If your website does not match up with the image you want to portray, a potential patient surfing the web may decide to contact a different practice with a more updated site.

5) Your site wasn’t built with a specific goal in mind.

When websites first became a necessary marketing tool for businesses, they served merely as an online brochure. Years ago, your typical website was strictly informative, with no set goal to accomplish. Now, the first question we ask our clients is what goal they want to accomplish by redesigning their website. Whether your goal is to generate leads, to increase blog subscribers or to provide downloadable new patient information forms, we now can design your website to accomplish your practice’s goals.

A website is one of the most important marketing tools for your practice. A new website can pay for itself!

As specialists in healthcare website development, we encourage you to contact us today and learn more about the services we offer. Together, we can work toward improving your site, with the ultimate goal of increasing your web presence and your visibility.

In the medical industry in particular, patient reviews of your practice are an essential part of establishing brand awareness, reputation, and the enhancement of your SEO ranking strategy. By encouraging your patients to write unbiased reviews about their experiences at your practice, you’re accomplishing a number of different things to further your business.

Benefits of Online Patient Reviews

1. Establishing brand awareness - this is a simple concept; the more your brand appears online, the more exposure people will have to your practice even if initially they’re merely recognizing your name. A portion of these individuals that are familiar with your practice will become patients themselves or refer someone else in need of your services to you.

2. Developing a reputation - in this industry, a portion of new patients come into your practice based on referrals from other satisfied clients, and that is especially true when your services are categorized as elective. Independent review sites like Yelp, RateMDs and Google Places provide additional ways for people to share their experiences and reach a greater audience than they would by word of mouth alone. Your reputation will grow positively when people can see that you have a track record of leaving clients satisfied. When prospective patients have information about your reputation conveniently at their fingertips, they’re more likely to make a decision without hesitation to come in if they like what they see.

3. Improving your search engine rankings - online directories like Google Places are great resources for people looking for medical practices in their area (like searching through the phone book but with a map to help you get there). The more positive reviews you have attached to these listings, the higher you will be ranked with these directories and in Google’s search engine results. High rankings lead to greater exposure and can draw in more business! These directories do also provide links to your website and/or your blog, so as people click from the review those rankings are being improved as well.

Getting Patients Involved in Online Reviewing

Patients that have had their expectations met are less likely to go out of their way to post a public review than those that have been disappointed or blown away by great service. Mentioning to all clients that their feedback on these domains will help you meet or maintain an exceptional level of patient satisfaction will encourage many to share their reviews!

Additional review sites to explore: Vitals.com, Healthgrades.com. To get started with online reviews in your practice, make sure your practice is listed on these directories and the ones noted above, and then encourage patients to visit!

For more information on how you can implement this internet marketing strategy or learn more about our web visibility services, contact MedNet Technologies.

Twitter is an excellent tool for branding yourself. Although it may seem very basic at first, it has many features that can be utilized to rapidly spread awareness about the services you offer.

The Language of Twitter

You are going to notice that Twitter seems to have its own language. Let’s go over some of these hip Twitter terms to spare you any time and confusion.

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In the early days of the web many sites were created with the simple idea of establishing a presence on a new medium.  Other sites were created with the idea of generating new business or fulfilling some other business function, but little was known about how people used the web and what strategies would maximize the effectiveness of a web site.

Eventually, web sites began to give more focus to attracting visitors and getting these visitors to take action.  With a lack of detailed tracking, these marketing efforts were difficult to measure and adjust.  The booming market in search advertising helped fuel the creation of modern analytics software which gave web sites the ability to segment their audience and truly evaluate their marketing campaigns.  This not only gave advertisers a level of tracking unavailable in any other form of advertising, it also furthered the science of creating web sites by giving designers a better understanding of how to build sites for maximum effectiveness.

The future of the web will focus highly on action-oriented web sites which are tested and adjusted, over time, to maximize performance.  Software is already available that allows for sophisticated methods of testing different designs, layouts, and text, ultimately determining what makes a website more effective. 

We’re not at a stage where it is practical or cost effective for small businesses to conduct this level of testing and analysis, but clearly a lot has changed in how sites are created today based on what the past has taught us. By taking a fresh look at your old web site and defining a better strategy, determining the needs of your target market, and meeting those needs with strong calls to action, the finished product will be a site design which is better oriented toward achieving your goals.

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Existing patients are an extremely valuable group to market to and communicating with them effectively not only increases return visits, but also the likelihood that they will refer others in their network to your practice. Here are some different avenues you can explore to make the most of your existing client base.

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